Question on apple trees

[Jimmy G]

Alright guys and gals. Got a question for you. Last few years I've been noticing my apple trees get a burnt look on my pruning cuts. Started out on a couple of libertys that were accidentally beheaded by a field sprayer. Probably purely coincidental that it started there but...now it seems like any normal pruning cut turns black instead of healing over nicely. This is a 4 year old orchard. Tried sanitizing my pruner between trees but it seems to creep in. Even the bark down the trunk has dusting of black. Ideas??

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[Turkey Creek]

Mildew/ mold of sometype? Have you tried washing it off? That will tell us more if it is some type of mildew or mold.

 

[Prof.Kent]

I have the same problems with pruning cuts. I know it as not Fire Blight. Some trees are more resistant than others.

 

[sandbur]

I have the same problems with pruning cuts. I know it as not Fire Blight. Some trees are more resistant than others.

Snowsweet has got hit hard by me and I lost a tree. Another Sw is showing it.


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[Jimmy G]

I'll try to wash it off tomorrow. Before we moved here we lived a mile east of here and I never had any pruning cut problems.
Cuts never seem to heal right either. The two beheaded libertys just struggle and struggle.

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[homerj]

I believe that's sooty mold

 

[Barndog56]

I've had that too. I believe Winesap and Wolf River are the two showing it.

 

[Prof.Kent]

Things change. When I was a kid we didn't have vine blight destroying our vine crops every summer.

 

[Bill]

I gave up on fruit because of that. I figured fire blight. Two pears completely covered. I cut them to the ground. Let them grow back and the shoots ended up the same.

 

[Prof.Kent]

I gave up on fruit because of that. I figured fire blight. Two pears completely covered. I cut them to the ground. Let them grow back and the shoots ended up the same.

Some places Fire blight is really bad and a lot of pears are susceptible to it. There are good apple trees that are resistant. Fortunately I get very little fire blight here. I don't spray for it. And when I find it I just cut it out.

 

[PoorSand]

Jimmy G: Thanks for sharing the pictures. I've noticed that look on some of my old pruning cuts on apple trees, though not as bad, and was concerned by it, though it never seemed to spread from the cuts to the new growth on the trees.

 

[Jimmy G]

So cleaned up a few with water and a soft bristle brush, this photo is from the next day. Looks like where the mold was the pruning cut maybe was not healing right? Not sure...

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[H20fwler]

I would start using a tar based sealant when you prune or remove limbs. Something like TreeKote or similar to protect the tree from getting anything bad in the scar and it will heal over better.

 

[Apple Junkie]

In a perfect world, you'd like to see a nice healing collar forming around the edges of the pruning cut. You could be right, the mold might be the result